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Subtle moves by the Ijaw of Delta South Senatorial District to occupy Government House, Asaba in 2023, has been challenged by the Urhobo, who have argued that the Ijaw were trying to truncate the procedure for transition.
They insisted that the rotational understanding among the different ethnic nationalities in the state have seen each of the three senatorial districts producing the governor, an arrangement they said, had ensured equity and fair play.
The argument is that the nationalities could grow a culture of mutual respect for one another by adhering equity and justice, in the unwritten order of the zoning arrangement in the state since 1999.
It started with James Onanefe Ibori from Delta Central Senatorial District taking the first eight years, followed by. Emmanuel Uduaghan (Delta South) before Ifeanyi Okowa (Delta North) who holds sway till 2023.
A political activist and social commentator from Ughelli North Council Area, Anthony Omowhovo, stated in a statement titled, “2023 Governorship Race in Delta State and the Unconscionable Conduct of Ijaw Politicians,” that he read, “With a mixture of amusement and empathy write ups on which zone should produce the next governor in 2023.”
He argued that although zoning, as a means of promoting fairness and equity in a skewed polity like Nigeria where the informed and uninformed are held hostage by primordial values and loyalty, has become an acceptable practice in spite of its initial rejection by a large spectrum of society as undemocratic.
“Although I was one of the critics of zoning when it was mooted at the Federal and the state level, I have nevertheless embraced it like many others, who initially opposed it.
“So zoning of offices, having been foisted on us by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) leadership in the state, we expect every zone, which had done its full eight years term to guide the zoning formula to entrench equity and justice, so that Delta State could grow a culture of mutual respect for one another,” he said.
Omowhovo further argued that the sequence dictates that by 2023, Delta Central Senatorial District, which last occupied the office 16 years ago, should produce the governor under the zoning arrangement, saying, “The arrangement has become sacrosanct.”
He, however, said recent, it has been observed that despite the sanctity of the zoning formula in Delta State PDP, a clique in party has been orchestrating a plan to jettison the zoning formula.
“Curiously, the Ijaw who are predominantly members of PDP that subscribed to zoning, are the ones now engaged in mischiefs to erode the zoning formula and foist one of their own as PDP’s governorship flag bearer come 2023 in desecration of the formula they once championed,” he added.
